The Bulletin of the Institute of Ethnography SAS (I-VII)/ SASA (VIII/) is a scientific periodical of international significance which publishes papers in ethnology/anthropology. From its inception in 1952, the Bulletin publishes the results of scientific research projects of scientists and associates of the Institute and other affiliated institutions in the country and abroad. In addition, discussions and articles, supplements, field data, retrospectives, chronicles, reviews, translations, notes, bibliographies, obituaries, memories, critiques and similar are published as well. The Bulletin was founded as a means to publish the results of research of settlements and origins of populations, folk life, customs and folk proverbs. However, the concept of the Bulletin, like that of any other contemporary scientific journal, changed over time to accommodate the social, cultural and political processes and research trends in the social sciences and humanities.

In general terms, the papers published in the Bulletin can be grouped into a number of phases. Until the 1980’s fundamental ethnic research and systematic research of urban and rural environments in Serbia and Yugoslavia were published. The next phase encompasses papers which offer a new theoretical and methodological grounding for the study of various phenomena pertaining to material and spiritual culture and social life. Papers on the study of ethnicity (diaspora and minorities in neighboring countries), cultural and social change, political anthropology, everyday social life etc. were the results of studies carried out in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Recent issues of the Bulletin published papers on the topic of processes of transition in Serbia. From 2000 onward, the papers in the Bulletin are mostly based on the results of research carried out as part of larger domestic and international research projects.

Issue no. 27 (published in 1978) saw the journal get its international standard serial number (YU ISSN 0584–4895), which was changed with issue no. 28 and remains the same YU ISSN 0350–0961. According to the standards of the Universal Decimal Classification (UDC), it was classified into group 39 – Ethnology.
It is published in the Cyrillic script, with abstracts in foreign languages (French, English, German). From the issue no. 50-51 (2003) some papers are published in English, and since 2007, with the introduction of semiannual publication, every other issue of the Bulletin is in English.

The Bulletin (GEI) is referenced in the electronic bases: DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals), Ulrich's Periodicals Directory and SCIndex (Serbian Citation Index). All articles are digitally available in a form typographically true to the original (in .pdf format). The Bulletin is also available in the same form on the website of the Institute of Ethnography SASA.

The accelerated development of information technologies and the increasing availability of scientific information have led to the creation of new, uniform rules of editing, the goal of which is to advance the quality of domestic publications and include them into the domestic and international system of information exchange. Complying with the instructions given in the Scientific Journals Editing Act adopted by the Serbian Ministry of Science and Technological Development in 2009, the Bulletin of the Institute of Ethnography SASA was categorized as a journal of international significance (M24). Since 2010, it has become part of the international cross-referencing system (CrossRef), and articles are awarded a unique numerical code DOI (Digital Object Identifier), which establishes the connection with the Internet page where the article can be found.
The Bulletin (GEI SANU) can also be found and read at CEEOL (Central and Eastern European Online Library): http://www.ceeol.com

The periodic publication titled The Collection of Papers of the Ethnographic Institute SAS/SASA began its life just three years after the Institute of Ethnography SASA was founded. The first issue of the edited volume was published as a sub-series in the series of Collections of Papers published by the Academy in 1950. The series Collection of Papers of SAS was started in 1949 with the objective of having the papers from different institutes within the SAS published in its sub-series. The series ceased to exist when the different institutes became independent, but the institutes themselves retain the publication, but as part of their own series. In this form the Institute of Ethnography published issues 1-4 (1950-1962). The first issue titled The Collection of Papers of the Institute of Ethnography SASA came out in 1971 with volume no. 5, and is still published under that name today.

The Collection publishes the results of scientific research on certain issues, thematic and regional studies, reports from conferences, results of work on larger projects, magisterial theses.

The first volumes of the Collection saw the publication of results of the research of settlements and the origins of populations, folk life, customs and folklore, which were part of the goals and research program when the Institute was founded. The research was conducted by the anthropogeographic, ethnological and folkloristic department of the Institute. A large number of papers refers to the topic of the folklore of the People’s liberation War, and are the result of systematic gathering and study of partisan folk poetry in Serbian and the languages of national minorities in the period between 1947 and 1949.

The results of the work conducted as part of projects spanning several years which were contracted by the Republic Community of Science of Serbia, and later the Ministry of Science of the Republic of Serbia are the topics of several volumes of the Collection: The study and research into the settlements endangered by large public infrastructural works were published in volumes 6-8 (1873/1976) under the title Ethnological studies of Djerdap settlements. At the time of the Djerdap research the studies of national minorities (Slovaks, Rusyns and Ukrainians) in Vojvodina and Serbs in diaspora in the Romanian settlement Svinjica was initiated, and the results were published in the 5th volume of the Collection;Stаlno prаćenje promenа u nаrodnoj kulturi nа selu [The Continuing Monitoring of Changes in Rural Folk Culture] (1971–1975) in volume 10 of the Collection (1980); the three-volume issue 14-16 (1984)Stаlno prаćenje promenа u nаrodnoj kulturi – preobrаžаj prigrаdskih nаseljа [The Continuing Monitoring of Changes in Folk Culture – the Transformation of Suburban Settlements] (1976–1980) dealt with the study of changes in the culture of living, marriage and family and customs and rites of passage in suburban and other settlements in the vicinity of Belgrade, Krusevac, Leskovac, Pirot and Novi Pazar. The Ministry of Science and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Serbia commissioned five projects from the Institute of Ethnography SASA in 2001 and 2005, and the researchers published their papers in issues 21-26 of the Collection, as well as in other publications.

Volumes 9-13 are dedicated to meritorious contributors and associates of the Institute, Academicians Dušаn Nedeljković (vol. 9), Brаnislаv Kojić (vol. 10), Atаnаsije Urošević (vol. 11), Milisаv Lutovac (vol. 12) i primаrius dr Milorаd Drаgić (vol. 13), with special focus on their contributions to ethnology and similar sciences. A number of volumes are dedicated to significant jubilees.
Reports from international scientific conferences (Prilozi proučаvаnju etničkog identitetа [Contributions to the Study of Ethnic Identity], Etnologijа i аntropologijа: stаnje i perspektive [Ethnology and Anthropology: Current Conditions and Perspectives], Svаkodnevnа kulturа u postsocijаlističkom periodu [Everyday Culture in the Post-scoalist Period], Slike kulture – nekаd i sаd [Images of Culture – Then and Now], Spomen mestа: istorijа – sećаnjа [Places of remembrance: history – memories]) were published in volumes 20 (1989), 21 (2005), 22 (2006), 24 i 25 (2008) and 26 (2009), and the magisterial theses of Zorica Divаc, Dobrila Brаtić and Miroslаva Mаlešević in volumes 17–18 (1985) and 19 (1986).

The Collection is published in Serbian, in the Cyrillic script with abstracts in foreign languages (French, English, German, Russian or Bulgarian).

Starting with volume no. 9 (1979), the Collection got its International Standard Serial Number ISSN 0351–1499, and since volume no. 21 all issues also have an International Serial Book Number, as monographic publications.